


It's Been a Long Time, But I Still Remember Us

by lemonhopia



Series: Liquid Confidence [3]
Category: Day6 (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Drinking, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Mutual Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-14
Updated: 2018-11-14
Packaged: 2019-08-23 11:52:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,452
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16618463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lemonhopia/pseuds/lemonhopia
Summary: *Part 3 of a DAY6xreader drinking au series*Your bedroom's balcony has been witness to years worth of drunken nights,  laughter, and tears. Tonight, you hope it holds a second chance.





	It's Been a Long Time, But I Still Remember Us

If you ask me what my favorite place is, you will never have guessed what it was. It is here. The balcony of my old room in my parents’ house. It's not particularly breathtaking, nor the view scenic, but it's home. Beautiful doesn't always have to be picturesque, with sparkly city skylines or sprawling landscapes or the sun setting into where the sky meets the sea. For me it's looking out into a balcony three storeys above the ground, watching the busy street below me and the vast sky above. It's where my heart is at ease. It's home. 

I breathe in the cold night air and enjoy the peace I've been craving for so long. 

 

“Welcome home,”

My heart skipped a beat at the sound of that voice. Sweet and soft and clear all at the same time. I immediately turned my head to the direction of the sound, and there he was. 

Kim Wonpil, standing on the adjacent balcony, wearing a smile enough to light even the darkest nights. 

“You didn't even tell me you were coming home, I'm hurt,” He was leaning on the railing, putting a hand over his heart in mock pain. 

“But I wanted to surprise you!”

“Well I'm surprised now,” 

We both laugh like miles and years didn't separate us. I took a moment to take him in completely. So different, yet so unchanged at the same time. His light blond hair was a stark contrast to the dark strands he used to have, a fitting match to the brightest sunshine I have ever known.

Those countless nights we spent on this same spot as kids dreaming about the world, then teenagers trying to make sense of life, and eventually as adults not quite ready to grow up, all of them came back in an instant.

And along with the flood of memories, the feelings that came with them came rushing back in as well. I've waited for this moment for such a long time, why is he so hard to face now? 

“You know what to do,” 

“My fridge is well-stocked, you know me,”

“I'm coming over then,” 

“Thought you'd never ask.”

 

Once the door from his balcony to his bedroom closed, I pulled out the inflatable pool cushion that we've been using since our college years. It's barely big enough for the two of us, but we never complained.

I heard my bedroom door creak open while I was taking a beer from the mini fridge beside my bed. 

“I still have the keys,”

I look up to see Wonpil grinning proudly while holding up a pair of spare keys, one to the house and one to my bedroom. He pretty much lives here half the time, since his parents were barely around when we were kids.

I didn't even get the chance to say anything before I was tackle hugged to the floor. 

“I missed you,” Typical clingy Wonpil, still as warm and soft as I remember him to be. We were polar opposites, but somehow fit so well. Maybe because we fill each other’s gaps perfectly.

“Same,” My voice was barely a whisper, and muffled by burying my face in his shoulder. I don't want to get used to this again. I already did, and it wrecked me when I didn't have it anymore. “Pirrie, I can't breathe, let go,” I chuckled softly into his shoulder, but to be honest, breathing wasn't a priority if I get to hold him like this.

“You say let go but your arms aren't moving,” 

I laughed and pushed him off gently. Reluctantly, he let go and I handed him a can. I gestured to the wide sliding doors that separated my room from the balcony.

 

All the laughter, tears, and drunken rants that happened here, everything seemed like they were lifetimes ago but seeing Wonpil again like this made it feel like I never even left.

“How long have you been home?” He asked while opening a can. 

“Just this morning,”

“Oh… I didn't even know you were supposed to be coming home anytime soon,” 

“Sorry I didn't tell you, I was really planning to surprise you but I didn't know what to do, I was pressed for time and I didn’t know-”

He pinched my cheek the way he always does when I'm being too hard on myself. 

_ Because I was scared you wouldn't even care that I'm back. _

“I’m just happy you’re back, that’s enough,”

“Me too.” 

And I really was.

We raised our drinks for a toast. It was just like that summer two years ago, before I left for Japan after our college graduation. We were laying here at this same spot, silently wondering what’s in store for us, both afraid of and looking forward to the future.

Maybe it can even be better, actually. Maybe this time I'll have the courage to take the chance I once ran away from, maybe I'll have the heart to face what I missed out on. Life once already gave us a goodbye. This time I'm not going to waste this hello. 

 

“We should really get a cooler, we keep running back and forth to your fridge,” Wonpil was laying down on the cushion, laughing his heart out, and I couldn’t look away. He must have noticed, because he stopped for a moment and looked up at me.

“Or maybe I can just move the fridge here?” I shrugged.

“You always have the best ideas,”

“Of course I do.” I continued, then trailed off. “Even if I don’t make the best decisions all the time…”

Was I really doing the right thing, right now?

He sat up slowly, propping himself up on his arms.

“Do you ever regret anything?”   
“Hmm?” The question came out of nowhere, though it wasn’t really a surprise. Typical tipsy Wonpil. Randomly asking all the hardest questions, sometimes making sense and sometimes not. “Regret anything about what?”

“Just anything,” His eyes were fixed on me, eagerly waiting for an answer. There was no escaping Wonpil when he was like this, and both looking away and looking at him were so hard.

“I don’t know, to be honest.. I mean there are some things I could have thought through better.. People I shouldn’t have wasted so much of myself on… But I don’t know if I really regret them?” I paused, suddenly feeling so exposed. I didn’t know how exactly I felt either. “Maybe it’s more like a ‘what if’?”

“Like what if you never left?” That felt like a stab to my heart.

“Yeah… I guess…”

“People you shouldn’t have wasted so much time on, huh…” 

“There was quite a number of them,”

“Which was why we were here a lot,” He laughed, and looked into the distance.

It was funny to think of now, how we both got hearts broken over and over and we always end up in the same place. Up here in my 3rd floor balcony, hearts and drinks freely pouring out until sunrise.

“Isn’t that what we’re doing right now?” I got a curious look.

“I thought we were celebrating you being back home?”

“Well, yeah.. But…”

“Did you get your heart broken in Sendai?”

“Not really…”  _ My heart already broke too many times here.  _

“Reeeeaaallly,” Wonpil was back to his teasing mode again, gently nudging my side with his elbow.

“And how about you? How many times did you get your heart broken in Incheon?”

“Oh, is this is a contest now?” Another giggle and a gulp of  beer. He sure was going through can after can unusually fast. Since when did his tolerance go up?

“I bet you'd win,”

“Please, I can't even track how many soft boys you cried over,” 

_ It was true though.  _

“Coming from someone who keeps coming after sad and emotionally unavailable girls who only use you as a shock absorber?”

He stuck his tongue out at me but his expression softened after, suddenly turning distant like he's recalling something he has buried long ago, and let out a deep sigh. “Hey, it’s not always like that.. The last time I had my heart broken, it really was my fault… Well, not that the other times weren’t, but this one’s different,”

“Fair enough, same here..” I leaned back and closed my eyes, hoping I could still turn my biggest what-if’s around. When I looked again, Wonpil was still in a distant gaze. “Hey… What is it? I'm sorry, that was too hard, I shouldn’t have said that,”

“Nah, don’t mind it, it’s true anyway,” He shrugged and forced a laugh. “Everything that happened though, they all led us to where we are right now,”

“That’s what I keep telling myself. All the time. That what’s important is I’m happy in the end,”

“But it doesn't have to be a happy ending. We all deserve to be happy all- well, most of the time. Are you happy though? Right now?” He turned to me again, eyes wide and curious, eagerly awaiting an answer.

“I am, in a way… I'm with-” I held my breath and caught myself before it was too late. “-I’m home. How about you?”

Wonpil didn't answer right away, a hint of sadness flashing in his eyes before he got the courage to talk again.

“Yeah. I am now.” He flashed a small smile. “You know I missed you right?” His eyes were reflecting the moonlight and I can't bear to look away. 

“You've been telling me that countless times since you got here,” 

“Well, I really did,” 

I missed him too, really, though I tried my hardest not to.

“I’m not going anywhere now, don’t worry,” The way I said it feltb wesk, unsure if I should really be making promises like this but I can’t help it. I really didn’t want to leave.

The cushion shifted with his weight and Wonpil carefully lowered himself so he was curled up on my lap. Absent-mindedly, my fingers ran through his hair, surprisingly still quite soft despite the multiple bleachings. 

“You better not be,” 

“Hey, don’t sleep, I thought we’re gonna watch the sunrise?” I shook him lightly, but he just laughed clung to my leg tighter.

“I’m not sleeping, this is… comfortable silence…” 

“My leg feels dead,  _ I’m  _ not comfortable,” I jokingly pushed him off but he won’t budge. Instead, he rolled over so he was on his back, facing me. 

“I don’t want your leg to die but I like this view,”

“I like this view too,” I probably look dumb because of the smile that won’t leave my face, but I didn’t care. He took my hand laying on his stomach and intertwined our fingers. I expected my heart to jump out of my chest but it felt the total opposite. It was comforting. My heart was at ease. Wonpil’s presence has always reminded me of the warmth and safety of home.

“Are you sure you’re not just drunk?” 

“ _ You’re _ the drunk one, you can’t even sit up anymore,” I pinched his cheek with my free hand, and he went back to being a cute giggly mess. 

“Hey, I can still sit okay,” After a few failed attempts, he managed to sit back up. He went back to sitting cross-legged next to me, but much closer this time. Our knees and shoulders were touching, the shared warmth between us a welcome contrast to the cool early morning breeze. My hand suddenly felt empty without his hand in it, though.

“Ok, I’ll give you that, but no more drinks for you,” He shot me a sad look for a brief second, but nodded in agreement and smiled to himself. “Look, the sun is almost up,” I pointed at the sky. In less than an hour the sun will be up.

 

We sat in comfortable silence for a while, until Wonpil broke the stillness of the moment. 

“I wish we'll always be like this when we're here,”

“Like what?” I turned to Wonpil to find him hugging his knees to his chest and fiddling with the stray threads on the sleeves of his sweater. This is how he is when he's nervous. What was he even so bothered about? But I never dared to ask. 

“Happy, just happy and carefree, like we didn't have a worry in the world.” He gestured with his hands. “I wish we didn't have to cry and hurt so much back then,”

“Aren't you the one who said everything that happens to us makes us who we are now?” 

“I know, but still, I wonder how things would have been different if we, if I-” He let out a nervous chuckle and a deep sigh, running his fingers through his hair in frustration.

Then I felt a hand cup my cheek, and a pair of lips on mine. Warm, soft, just like the body they belong to. It took some time to register but when it hit me, it felt like seeing in color for the first time. Wonpil's hands were trembling, yet I felt him smile when I pulled him closer by the waist and returned the kiss.

We didn't let go until the sky changed in color from deep blues to shades of purple and orange. Despite the longing, we took it slow, taking our time in savoring each other's taste we've only dreamed about for years. 

Breathless and ecstatic, we pulled away with smiles on our faces. 

“You know what? I'm glad we waited. I'm glad we didn't have the guts to tell each other until now,”

“Why?” He asked, forehead still pressed on mine.

“We were so dumb and immature back then, we could have hurt each other so much.”

“The universe prepared us for each other, huh,” 

“I guess so… I'm a mess but at least I've grown,”

“And we're still growing.” 

I couldn't have asked for a more perfect timing. Just like the sunrise bearing witness to this moment, today is just the beginning. I realized I didn't need someone who will take my breath away and make my heart flutter, I need someone who can be my home. 

I closed the distance between our lips once more, this time holding more hunger and intensity than the last. Wonpil grabbed me by the shoulders to lay me down, but we landed on the floor with a thud. 

“This pool floater is obviously too small for the two of us,” We both burst out laughing. “Why did we even buy this in the first place?”

Wonpil gave me a sly grin and a knowing look. “Oh c'mon, you know why,” 

“Well… We don't have to use this anymore you know, my bed is a lot bigger...”

**Author's Note:**

> [CC](https://curiouscat.me/lemonhopia)
> 
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